Powerless
by FaithinBones
Summary: Powerless, the elevator stops, trapping Booth and Brennan inside. His own sense of powerlessness threatening him, Booth must fight his past to save his future.


(The Blackout in the Blizzard)

This story was inspired by DGSchneider's story "Paper Wishes and Falling Snow". I recommend it. It's a really good Bones story.

I don't own Bones but we all know that.

Oooooooooooooooo

Just like that, the lights went out. He found himself in a box in the dark and he momentarily panicked. Listening to Brennan talk to Cam on the phone, Booth closed his eyes and calmly counted to ten. Opening them, he let the fact that there was light help him to regain his composure. _The last thing I need is to panic. Bones and Sweets won't understand and I'll just scare Bones. Get a grip. You're not in danger._

Looking around his surroundings as he waited for Brennan to get off the phone, he thanked God that the elevator was not closed in and that he could see out into the lobby and the staircase. _You're fine you idiot. You're in D.C. in an elevator with Bones. The kid is on the stairs. You are not in trouble. You are not back there. You're not in trouble._

Off the phone, Brennan glared at Booth and informed him that a man with a deadly virus was freely running around the city. They had a murder victim at the Lab that had been exposed to a serious disease and her murderer was also contaminated.

"And we're trapped in here." Feeling a touch of panic return, Booth yelled for Sweets. Not sure what the younger man could do, he felt it would be better if the kid was where he could see him.

Stumbling down the stairs, Sweets stared into the elevator, "Oh wow."

Annoyed, Booth shook his head, "Really?" Pulling his phone from his pocket he attempted to get the fire department to come and rescue him and his partner but unfortunately the dispatcher didn't believe him when he said that they needed to prevent an epidemic. Placing his phone in his pocket, Booth complained, "He didn't believe me."

After finding out that Cam had called the CDC and she had found out that no cases of hemorrhagic fever had been reported in the area, Booth knew they had time, he just didn't know how much.

Sweets, mooching blankets and lights from Booth's neighbor Mrs. Ross, tried to make the captives comfortable while they were trapped in the elevator.

While Brennan talked on the phone, Booth kept his eyes on the lobby. The room was fairly well lit by the overhead windows. His thoughts going back to when he'd been a prisoner of war in Iraq, Booth tried to remain as calm as possible. _Sweets would have a field day if you broke down and had psychotic break or something you idiot. You're strong so don't do anything stupid. Yeah, you're in a box suspended from the floor but it's an elevator. It's a damn elevator and not that . . . no, don't go there. Don't you dare scare Bones._

Feeling some calm settle over him, he turned his attention to the interior of the elevator. Noticing the escape hatch above their heads, Booth waited until Brennan was off the phone.

Her angry outburst taking him by surprise, Booth asked, "What? You blame me for what? For no match or the blizzard?"

Furious, Brennan berated his chairs and therefore him. He defended his need for the chairs as best he could without giving her the real reason he wanted them and diverted her attention with the fact that there was a hatch overhead.

Surprised, Brennan insisted, "Great I'll climb up and get it open." Staring at the hatch above, Brennan considered her next move while Booth protested that he was the one that should climb the chairs.

_I need to get the hell out of here. _Studying the chairs, he informed his partner, "Oh no, no, no, no, I'm the climber and you're the thinker."

After arguing with her, she forcefully pushed him down to his knees. Surprised, he found his face resting against her stomach while she tried to prove that she wasn't as wide as he was. Embarrassed that this was happening to him, Booth found himself in the uncomfortable position of trying to control his body as well as his mind. _Shit, I needed a distraction but not like this. Doesn't she get what she's doing to me for God's sake? Of course not, it's Bones._

Sweets walking back down the stairs after visiting Mrs. Ross, was startled and then amused by Booth's predicament. He so desperately wanted to make a rather witty remark about sexual positions but realized he would probably be signing his death warrant if he did. Wisely remaining mute, the psychologist listened as Brennan presented her case to both of them.

Realizing that he wasn't going to win the argument and desperate to remove himself from his partner's grasp, Booth agreed to let her climb the chairs. Once he was on his feet, Booth was grateful that he'd been embarrassed enough that his body hadn't dared to react in a mortifying manner. _Could this get any worse?_

Climbing up the chairs, Brennan carefully moved her feet and hands on the chairs using the elevator walls as a brace. Booth, worried for her, tried to remain below her and more or less in a position to protect her if she fell. That she did fall causing him to fall, was just the icing on his cake.

The pain in his back radiating through his legs and arms, he knew one thing for sure he absolutely didn't want her to touch him, "Don't touch me. It's my back, don't touch me." Agonizing pain shooting through his hips he yelled. Gasping, Booth tried to ride out the pain. _Trapped in a box and my back is probably broken, Fuck!_

After a few minutes, Brennan braved Booth's angry protests and with great care, she felt his arms and legs and determined that nothing was broken. Carefully moving her hands over his neck, his chest and then his lower back, Brennan was relieved, "I'm sure nothing is broken. I think you may have just bruised your Gluteus maximus and your Latissimus dorsi."

Staring at his partner, Booth slowly pulled himself up so that he was leaning against the wall of the elevator. Pain lancing through his back, Booth ordered Sweets to ask Mrs. Ross for some pain medicine. "She's been singing in the hallways for the last two weeks since she had dental surgery, believe me she has some." Slouched against the wall, Booth was reminded of his ordeal as a prisoner of war and he didn't like it at all. _Okay, you're hurt, but you're not in danger. You're in a damn elevator in Washington D.C., no one wants to hurt you. You're safe. Get a grip. You fell, no one did this to you. Don't scare Bones._

After Sweets returned with some aspirin, bottled water and a bag of frozen peas, Booth wasn't sure whether he should be angry or not.

Sweets, dropping everything on top of Booth, saw the Agent glare at him. His ire up, Booth exhaled deeply. _Right in the groin, shit, why me?_

Resigned, Booth made do with the aspirin and peas and soon found that the pain wasn't as sharp as it had been. Grateful that he hadn't broken anything, he rested the pea bag against his back. "It's cold, it's cold, it's cold . . . oh actually that feels pretty good."

ooooooooooooo

Soon, Sweets was trying to take advantage of the situation and tried to have a session with Booth and his partner. Bringing up Hannah was infuriating to the older man and since he couldn't get his hands around Sweets' neck to make him stop, Booth threw the bag of partially thawed peas at him instead. Watching the icy peas cascade down to the floor below, Booth snarled, "Don't ever mention Hannah again, do you understand?"

Trying to defuse the situation, Brennan suggested that Sweets take a walk. Uncertain what to do and not willing to talk about the blond reporter either, Brennan pulled out her phone and called the Lab.

Booth, half listening to his partner, closed his eyes and tried to regain some calm. _I'm already on edge and that kid just makes it worse. I can't be in here and yet I am. Bones is counting on me to keep my shit together and look what I did. I scared the hell out of Sweets and probably Bones too. Just pull yourself together man. You don't give a damn about Hannah. She's the past. Yeah, I don't care about her anymore. I don't. Calm your shit and do it now._

Listening to Brennan on the phone, he realized that he really needed to get out of their trap. She was needed at the Lab and he really needed to be out in the open. The walls felt like they were starting to move closer together and that was a very bad sign. He knew that he was on the brink of losing it and he really didn't want that to happen in front of his partner. Slowly standing and over his partner's objections, he tried to move the chairs from the hatch. Unsuccessful, he realized that he'd upset her more than he meant to, "I'm fine."

Sadly, Booth accepted that there was no way to move the chairs from the hatch and felt remorse for trapping his partner and friend in the elevator when she was needed to be elsewhere. _Just tell her. Don't let her think you're just being a goof over these chairs. _"Tuesday. October 21, 1980. Game six of the World Series." Explaining about his one perfect day with his father, Booth realized that the chairs were a link to a past that he needed. As much as he hated his father and was glad his grandfather had saved him, his father had been his father for one perfect day. _I sound like a damn loser, fuck!_

Much to his surprise, Brennan chose that moment to move them into what he thought was dangerous territory. She asked, "Should we discuss us?"

Surprising himself, Booth stared at her and replied quietly, "Yeah, no." Knowing that Sweets was nearby, the last thing he wanted to do was talk about their future with someone as nosy as Sweets close by. _If we have a future. No, wait, of course we have a future. Don't we? Oh God._

Desperate to get away from the elevator and his partner, Booth pulled his phone out of his pocket and called the apartment supervisor who connected him to the building maintenance man. Listening to excuse after excuse why Booth and Brennan would just have to wait until the electricity came back on, Booth finally ended the call. _Great, just great. I need to get out of here. Bones needs to get out of here._

After Brennan forced the issue, Booth apologized to Sweets but clearly she didn't think he'd actually done it. Watching Sweets accept and tell Booth it was okay, Brennan was more confused than before, "What? What's okay, Booth didn't say anything."

Amused, Booth smiled, "We're guys,"

Annoyed, Brennan answered her ringing phone. Finding Cam on the other end, Brennan listened as she was informed about what they knew about the victim so far. Bored and anxious at the same time, Booth sat down on the elevator floor and tried to ignore the pain in his back and the fact that the walls appeared to have moved closer to each other.

After she ended her call, she found out that she wasn't able to make the phone calls she needed to, so she had Sweets make them for her. Watching him leave the lobby and go outside into the blizzard to make the phone calls, Brennan gripped the bars surrounding her. _This is so ridiculous. I need to be at the Lab. The next time Booth wants to rescue furniture from the trash, I will definitely tell him no. Well, perhaps it will depend upon circumstances. He really wanted these seats. Sometimes he's too sentimental for his own good. I suppose that's what makes him Booth though. Yes, it does doesn't it._

Ooooooooooooooooo

Concerned for Booth, Brennan knelt next to him and informed him, "I've been taking classes lately that might be of benefit to you. I've learned a massage technique that might be able to help you and not require me to crack your back and thereby endangering you."

Wary, Booth asked her, "You took classes to help me? Why? I mean . . . thanks, but why?"

Shrugging her shoulders, Brennan smiled, "It's what partners do."

Flattered that Brennan thought so much of their partnership, Booth smiled, "What do I have to do? I can't get naked or anything. This is an elevator and well. . . uh. . . it's an elevator."

Taking his modesty into account, Brennan explained, "That isn't necessary. I will do the massage while you remain dressed. Now . . . I will start on your thighs and slowly use the techniques I was shown. It is an acupressure technique so it will be painless."

Her hands placed on his thigh, Booth soon felt the knots unraveling in his back, Surprised, he groaned in pleasure. As her hands moved further up, he suddenly became aware of just where her hands were and how close they were to his penis. Worried, Booth interrupted her, "We should stop, you know, because . . . ." Nodding his head at her hands close proximity to his junk, Booth smiled, "Before Sweets comes back."

Not really understanding Booth's discomfort, Brennan asked, "Why?" Realization hitting her, she removed her hands from his thigh, "Oh, I understand." Seeing the odd look on her partner's face, Brennan felt a slight blush invade her face. _I embarrassed him. I should have been more careful. Now he's uncomfortable. "_You think he will interpret our physical contact as yet another sign that we . . ."

Interrupting her, Booth sat up, "Yeah. Yeah, yeah . . . oh, but I got to tell you, my back feels . . . Wow . . . so much better. Thanks."

Relieved that Booth was happier than he had been since the lights went out, Brennan smiled, "No problem."

Surprised by the turn in the conversation, Booth and Brennan moved into a topic that surprised both of them. After talking about "it" and how they would probably be compatible sexually, Booth asked the question that didn't seem to have a real answer, "But then what? I mean, as a couple, you and me would never . . ."

Afraid that she was stepping over a line Booth wasn't willing to cross, Brennan interrupted him, "No it wouldn't work."

Disappointed, Booth wanted to know why she had said that when Sweets came back from making a phone call to Alliance for Human Dignity. He had called them to verify that the victim that was being examined at the Lab had worked for them and what she had been doing lately that might make her a murder victim.

Standing in front of the elevator, Sweets informed his friends that using the information that Cam, Angela, Hodgins and Wendell had found out about the victim, he now knew who the victim was and what she was doing that might have got her killed, "Human trafficking. She was investigating Human Trafficking in Albania. She came back here and went to neighborhoods with a heavy Albanian population and visited businesses that she thought might be covers, always slipping young women her number telling them to call her if they needed help."

Calling Angela, Brennan asked the computer expert and artist about the phone history of the victim's phone. Checking, Angela confirmed that a call had been made on the victim's phone around the time of her death, "It was from a building near the corner of Hill and 27th."

More anxious than ever to get out of the elevator, Booth complained, "Hill and 27th is less than a mile away. With the streets covered in snow, the FBI is not going to be able to send anyone to check it out for a while. Great, with us in here it might as well as be 100 miles away."

Studying the seats jammed in the elevator, Brennan advised him that she might have a way to get out of the elevator. "The bolts between the first and second seats are rusted. If we apply sufficient force with whatever combination of kicking or pulling or jumping we can break these apart."

Desperate to get out of the elevator, Booth quickly responded, "Let's do it."

Oooooooooooooooo

The murderer caught, the young girls he had locked up in a basement saved, Booth and Brennan returned to his apartment building later that night after a visit to the Emergency room for an antibiotic to ward off the disease Booth had been exposed to. Arriving they found the electricity back on in the building. Moving the seats from the elevator to his apartment, Booth rearranged his furniture, with his partners' help and finally sat down on his Vet seats. Rubbing the back of the seat next to him, Booth smiled, "See easy peasy."

Rolling her eyes, Brennan fished in her purse for her car keys, "I guess I should go home. It's been a long day."

Standing, Booth protested, "No way, Bones. It's still a mess out there. I'll get the restaurant across the street to deliver something and we'll eat dinner. . . . You can stay the night too. You can sleep in my bedroom and I can take the couch."

Seeing hope radiating from her partner, Brennan smiled but informed him, "Well, I'll stay for dinner but I will go home after that. You need your bed, Booth. The couch would just aggravate your back."

Shrugging his shoulders, Booth pleaded his case, "Then you can take the couch. Look, it's snowing again and you could end up trapped in your car. I got a warm apartment, some really warm blankets and . . . oh and I have beer." _Please stay, please._

Laughing, Brennan gave in, "Alright, I'll stay." _I just hope I'm not making a mistake. _

Pleased Booth, pulled out his phone and made his phone call to the restaurant. Once he was done, Booth cleared his throat, "Thanks for helping me out, Bones. I've been . . . well, you were there for me today and I know I really haven't been there for you lately and I'm sorry. I really am sorry. I'll do better, you'll see. My priorities have been a little skewed for quite a while and I just haven't . . . anyway, I have your back just like you had mine today. Count on it."

Sitting on the stadium seats, Brennan placed her purse on the floor, "Would you like to talk about anything, Booth? Hannah or Maluku or Afghanistan?"

Sitting back down, Booth clasped his hands and stared at them as they rested on his lap, "I don't know what to say about Hannah, Bones. She was my attempt to . . ." Unclasping his hands, Booth crossed his arms and leaned back against his chair, "If you want to ask me questions then go ahead."

Turning to face Booth, Brennan placed her hands on her thighs, "Do you still love her?"

Shaking his head, Booth sighed, "No, Bones." _Shit, I don't, do I? Hell no! _"I did love her or at least I think I did but . . . Bones, I've been confused and mixed up since my brain surgery. I woke up from that coma and I thought I was married to you and when I found out that we weren't it just about killed me. I just couldn't understand why we weren't together. I loved you and I . . . I didn't know about your feelings for me but . . . I didn't know what to do and when I finally had the guts to ask you to try for a relationship, I screwed that up royally and scared the hell out of you. . . . I thought about it afterward and I realized that you probably thought I wasn't really in love with you and that it was just leftovers from my coma but Bones . . . Bones I've been in love with you for a long time, long before that damn brain tumor. I'm not sure when I fell in love with you but . . . my love is real. It was real outside the Hoover and it's real now." Standing, Booth walked over to the window and pulled the curtain aside to watch the snow fall to the street below, "I didn't know how to prove it to you and then suddenly we were both in foreign places, out of contact and I just . . . I just gave up. Don't you see? I thought you didn't want me and I was so upset and lonely and Hannah came a long and she said all the right things and made me feel wanted. I know that makes me sound like a loser but, it's how it happened. I let it happen because I didn't think we had a future. I mean, besides as partners and friends. I knew I'd always be your friend Bones, always. I promised that I'd never walk away from you and I meant it."

Standing, Brennan moved over towards the window and stood next her partner, "Booth. . . "

Interrupting her, Booth released the curtain and placed some space between them, "Do you remember when I told you that you can love a lot of people but there is always someone you love the most?"

Staring at her friend, Brennan answered, "Yes."

Nodding his head, Booth licked his bottom lip, "You're the one, Bones. You're the one I will always love the most. You captured my heart a long time ago and . . . and no matter what happens between us, I will always love you the most."

Moving closer to Booth, Brennan placed her hand on his arm, "And you will always be the one I love the most."

Shocked, Booth swallowed, "Do you mean . . . no of course you always say what you mean . . . I . . ." Moving closer to her, Booth wrapped his arms around her and pulled her close, "I've made so many mistakes this last year. Decision after decision . . . I just . . ."

Leaning her head against his shoulder, Brennan sighed, "We've both made mistakes Booth. We hurt each other and that needs to stop. If we love each other . . . if we really love each other then running away from each other is no longer an option. I can't use Andrew or trips out of the country to keep you from getting too close to me and you can't use Hannah or the Army to keep me at arm's length. I'm not running away anymore, Booth. I don't want to have any more regrets." _Listen to me, Booth. Please listen to me._

Pulling away from her slightly, Booth bit his lower lip and stared into her blue blue eyes, "Bones, I don't want to have any regrets either. I was angry, but not at you. It was never you. I've been angry with myself for quite a while but I need to let that go. I can't live like that. I need to just let it go and . . . . I need you, Bones. Do you understand? I love you and I want to . . . I want us to . . ."

Interrupting him, Brennan leaned up and kissed him. Surprised, Booth returned the kiss. A storm igniting between them, they soon stumbled into Booth's bedroom and after undressing each other, moved to the bed where they showed each other just how much they loved the other.

Ooooooooooooooo

His moaning waking her, Brennan realized that Booth was dreaming and the dream seemed to be a terrible nightmare. Listening to him, the words that he muttered, she became aware that he was dreaming about the time he'd been held as a prisoner of war. Sad that he had had such terrible things done to him, she wrapped her arms around him and talked to him, "I love you, Booth. I'm right here, you're not alone. You'll never be alone if I can help it. I love you."

A peace settling over her lover, Brennan watched him relax and move closer towards her. Laying her head on his shoulder, she vowed, _I'll protect you, Booth. You're always trying to protect me but no one in your past has tried to protect you. I'll do it, Booth. You can trust me just like I trust you._

Ooooooooooooooo

So, a long story. I hope it was okay. Let me know what you think of it. Thank you.


End file.
